Pages

Friday, August 5, 2011

An Album that Influenced My Deconversion

It seems a little strange to me phrasing it that way, but the reality of it is that I was influenced somewhat by an album by the Brazilian metal band Angra. The album is called 'Temple of Shadows', and is a concept album that tells a story (fictional) set in the time of the Crusades.

From the Wikipedia page about the album:
"The 13 tracks tell a story written by guitarist Rafael Bittencourt about the life of a crusader in the 11th century - known as The Shadow Hunter - questioning the ideals of the Catholic Church."

"Track 6- Temple of Hate: Jerusalem is stormed by an army of the Holy Roman Church, in correspondence with the real event occurring in July 1099, and overcome with their zeal for Christianity, annihilate every single inhabitant. The Shadow Hunter's wife and two children are killed in this attack. The Reign of Jerusalem was founded upon the fanatic, intolerant and ignorant ideals of The Temple of Hate, against the will of those who lived in the Holy Land before their invasion."

"The entire population of the Holy city was put to the sword, Jews as well as Muslims, 70,000 men, women and children perished in a holocaust which raged for three days. In places men waded in blood up to their ankles and horsemen were splashed by it as they rode through the streets. Weeping, these devout conquerors went barefoot to pray at the Holy Sepulcher before rushing eagerly back to the slaughter."
—Desmond Sweard, The Monks of War.
Obviously I was aware of the crusades before listening to the album, but it opened my eyes to the atrocities committed in the name of the god that I believed in. It forced me to think seriously about how a loving god could allow things like that to be carried out in his name. It didn't matter that I wasn't a Catholic either, there was virtually no other kind of Christianity for centuries. This was it, and it was responsible for abominable acts.

2 comments:

  1. Nice! Do they sound anything like Sepultura?

    ReplyDelete
  2. @mythbusters

    one image that sums you USELESS ATHEIST SH&THEADS BEST!

    thethinkingatheist.com/forum/Thread-new-rulership-for-SCOFFING-BOURGEOIS-ATHEIST-PIGLETS

    ReplyDelete